1st Edition

The Conceptual Basis of Language (RLE Linguistics A: General Linguistics)

By David McNeill Copyright 1979
    328 Pages
    by Routledge

    324 Pages
    by Routledge

    In this volume, the author deals explicitly and literally with the speech-thought relationship. Departing boldly from contemporary linguistic and psycholinguistic thinking, the author offers us one of the truly serious efforts since Vygotsky to deal with this question. A unifying theme is the organization of action, and speech is seen as growing out of sensory-motor representations that are simultaneously part of meaning and part of action.

    Preface.  Part 1: Introduction  1. Introduction  2. Previous Work  2.1. Speech Comprehension  2.2. Speech Production  Part 2: Theory  3. Sign Structures  3.1. The Theory of Signs  3.2. Summary  4. Basis of Syntagmata  4.1. Syntagmata From the Point of View of Speech Output Control  4.2. The AB Model  4.3. Syntagmata From the Point of View of Sign Relationships  4.4. Articulation Growth (Growth of System B)  4.5. Cognitive Growth (Growth of System A)  4.6. Summary  5. Sensory-Motor Ideas  5.1. Sensory-Motor Ideas Based on Events  5.2. Other Sensory-Motor Ideas  5.3. Specification of Events With Cases  5.4. Other Basic Ideas  5.5. Summary  6. Conceptual Structure  6.1. Basic Representation  6.2. Extending the Representation  6.3. Derivation of New Results  6.4. Summary  7. Some Symbolic Signs  7.1. Form of Representation  7.2. The Passive  7.3. The Restrictive Relative Clause  7.4. The Pseudocleft  7.5. Summary  Part 3: Data  8. Analyses of Conceptual Structure  8.1. Methods  8.2. Findings  8.3. Summary  9. Spontaneous Speech  9.1. Types of Speech Dysfluencies  9.2. The Effects of Complexity  9.3. Phonemic Clauses  9.4. Syntactic Devices  9.5. Summary  10. Ontogenesis  10.1. Semiotic Extension  10.2. orientation of Language  10.3. Acquisition of Syntactic Devices  10.5. Summary  11. Gestures  11.1. previous Research on Gestures  11.2. Empirical Study of Gestures  11.3. gestures Accompanying Speech Dysfluencies  11.4. Gesture Peak  11.5. Forms of Gestures  11.6. Complexity  11.7. Summary  Part 4: Conclusion  12. Processes, Goals and Grammatical Systems  12.1. Process and Use  12.2. Processes and Grammatical Systems.  References.  Author Index.  Subject Index

    Biography

    David McNeill